The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 6 letter word BOWERS
I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
B
O
W
E
R
S
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Shady spots" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case shady spots = bowers.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does BOWERS mean?
BOWERS noun- A bedroom or private apartments, especially for a woman in a medieval castle.
- A dwelling; a picturesque country cottage, especially one that is used as a retreat.
- A shady, leafy shelter or recess in a garden or woods.
- A large structure made of grass and bright objects, used by the bower bird during courtship displays.
- A peasant; a farmer.
- Either of the two highest trumps in euchre.
- A type of ship's anchor, carried at the bow.
- One who bows or bends.
- A muscle that bends a limb, especially the arm.
- One who plays any of several bow instruments, such as the musical bow or diddley bow.
- A young hawk, when it begins to leave the nest.